BHP to Rein In Investment, Chief Says

By

Robb M. Stewart And

Alex MacDonald

Updated May 14, 2013 9:05 a.m. ET

The new chief executive of BHP Billiton has pledged to put the brakes on profligate investment over the next few years, following concerns over meager returns from big projects in areas such as shale gas that have drawn criticism from shareholders.

In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Andrew Mackenzie said the world's biggest mining company by market capitalization would scale back capital expenditure "quite...